Would you take over my Instagram?
I want to publish your photography stories on IG.
My Instagram needs a reboot.
When I started writing this newsletter here on Substack, I knew I needed to reimagine how I approached things to keep it interesting. I complain about Instagram a lot, but I do love it, and it’s impossible to explain how much of an impact it’s had on my practice as a curator and writer.
I think we all agree it’s a fantastic place to discover photography.
I’ve been thinking about how I can refresh my Instagram habit. I love showing pictures and frequently ask questions of the folks who follow me there. That’s rewarding and fun, but it feels like something is missing, and I’ve been brainstorming how to add a creative dimension to keep it engaging for me and the 53k folks who follow the feed.
The other day, I put this idea out to my readers, and the response was overwhelmingly positive. Community contributions have always been central to the FlakPhoto project, and I want to return to those roots. Hopefully, it inspires me in the process.
IG takeovers aren’t new, but for various reasons, I’ve never done them on the FlakPhoto feed. What I’m proposing is slightly different than a traditional IG takeover. Rather than simply handing the keys to a photographer, I want to collaborate with them to make something new. That will involve some curatorial work on my part, some writing from the photographer, and some collaborative editing we’ll do together. The result will be like the stories I’ve published in the newsletter over the past few months:
I’m still figuring out how this is going to work. For now, I want to hear from the photographers who read this newsletter. Please email me if you’d like to collaborate on something like this. Don’t forget to include a link to your website and Instagram so I can see your photography.
I’m especially interested in featuring photographers with smaller IG followings, at least to begin with. Hopefully, this will put lesser-known imagemakers in front of an audience of passionate photographers and turn the folks who follow my feed onto some new photography in the process. Ideally, it will be fun for everyone.
Thanks in advance for considering this. I’m looking forward to hearing from you!
One more thing…
I’m teaming up with Joel Meyerowitz and Thames & Hudson to give away a copy of Joel’s new book, The Question of Color, here soon. Stay tuned for details!
I would LOVE to take over your IG, but I don't care about talking about my own work. I'd love to talk about a dozen female photographers who I have admired for decades, none of whom is named Annie, and all of whom are over 50....in other words, the invisible demographic.
Thank you so much for the feature Andy! I appreciate you uplifting the work of other photographers.